GOP lawmaker mistakenly wishes Navy happy birthday with photo of Russian ship

GOP Rep. Brian Mast (Fla.) on Sunday mistakenly used a picture of a Russian warship in a tweet celebrating the 244th birthday of the U.S. Navy. 

The tweet shared from the former Army staff sergeant’s account featured the Pyotr Velikiy, a Kirov-class battlecruiser in the Russian navy. The tweet was deleted soon after some members of the media flagged the error.

“Happy birthday to the US Navy! To the men and women who serve to keep our waters safe, we thank you,” Mast, who represents Florida’s 18th Congressional District, said on Twitter after deleting the initial post.

Happy birthday to the US Navy! To the men and women who serve to keep our waters safe, we thank you. https://t.co/yYUilgIh7v

— Brian Mast (@BrianMastFL) October 13, 2019 

{mosads}Mast’s office did not immediately respond to a request for comment on the error from The Hill. 

It remains unclear how the error occurred.

Task & Purpose noted that an image of the Pyotr Velikiy is the first result when searching “warship” on Shutterstock, a provider of stock photography.  

That’s the Russian battlecruiser Pyotr Velikiy pic.twitter.com/FJKsRYU1g0

— Dave Brown (@dave_brown24) October 13, 2019